Originally Posted by: joshuagodinez1117

I've never been very musical. I've failed at drums, piano, and harmonica in addition to guitar.

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Keep this in mind; if you've failed 9 out of 10 times, you've succeded. Think about that for a minute.

Originally Posted by: joshuagodinez1117

I practice for 15 minutes 3 times per day and work on learning theory and trying to train my ear in relative pitch.

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Good plan to break up sessions in to smaller chunks. Your finger tips will thank you for that.

Originally Posted by: joshuagodinez1117

I'm fat so trying to work around my belly with a dreadnaught guitar is challenging. I'm still looking for that proper posture that works with my body and guitar.

Here's a tip from one fatty to another; get a strap if you haven't already. You don't have to try to manage the guitar and fretting/strumming too. To be honest, I find a slight (slight) slouch to be the ideal for me in terms of posture. Not what is recommended as proper but it tilts the guitar in a way that is more accessable.

[quote=joshuagodinez1117]

My only criticism of all programs, including this one, is there's no method for assessing progress that seems sufficient to me...but I still don't have a good sense of what is "good enough" to move on to the next video.

And you won't ever find that. This is primarily due to the fact that you are self assessing and that means that you'll never fairly judge yourself. It's also due to the fact that there is no scale by which all guitar players are measured. It's not like the high jump or a track meet where you have measurements.

My job is analytical by nature. You'd think data would be objective but in the end, the existence of data is only in support of a supposition. There's an art to data analysis but it's due to the need of data to tell the story of whetever it is that you're digging all those numbers for. That 'story' or thing I need data to support likely already has value and it's a matter of how much value. What I can't tell before doing my data dig is how valuable.

How does that apply here; the 'story' is the ability to execute some skill on the guitar but you don't need data to know that you're playing something well (or well enough). Sure, if there were a scale to measure by, it would be easier to methodically mark progress. The problem is we are our only judge.

If anything, you may (eventually) want to record yourself playing something you learned to see if you play it as well upon playback as you do when you're playing it. It can cause cringes but playback strips away some of your subjectivity. It can be a bit painful and I don't suggest doing that too soon as it can be demoralizing when you're just starting to get your guitar sea legs.

Key here is to not worry that you've prefected a skill. Just that you are somewhat comfortable. Then move on. Don't forget that new skill. As a matter of fact, some of your practice should be dedicated to review of skills you've learned just to keep them up to speed.

[quote=joshuagodinez1117]

I'm dreading chords, though. I really hope involvement in this site will help me get past that historic hurdle.

To demystify chords; the majority of chords you'll play in most modern music are these major open chords E, A, G, C and D. These are often referred to as 'cowboy chords'. You'll notice that Guitar Tricks leads with those. You can play an enormous amount of music with just those chords. Eventually you'll move on to barre chords, which is a simple concept but takes a little patience with your hands.

The thing is, with the cowboy chords and barre chords, you can play nearly any modern rock song. I mean, that is not literally true but that takes out an enormous chunk.

Sure, there are million chords and the longer you play, the broader your vocabulary becomes. However, just to be able to play, it's those basics that will get you pretty far.

Though you will eventually learn chord structures and what the difference is between an Amaj and A7 chord and the theory behind that, do not get tied up in that at the outset. Don't everthink it. You'll have plenty of time to overthink!! Just get the chords down and be comfortable with playing them. You'll find many songs in the Guitar Tricks catalogue that you can play with the cowboy chords and barre chords.

All that said....

It sounds like you might have been a victim of overthinking anyway. I can't say that for sure but from your post, that's what I read in to. I figure just rellx and go along for the ride that the Guitar Tricks structure gives you and all that stuff will come with time. All you have to do is practice.

Good luck!!!